Bath
by kuzion
Summary: Korra comes home exhausted from training so Mako gives her a bath (not smut).


Mako drummed his fingers on the table. Korra had said she would be late, but it was getting worrying now. The sun was getting low in the sky – he could tell from the light on the buildings opposite their house, a golden orange colour you only saw at sun set or in the desert.

Earlier in the evening he'd given up waiting for her to come home in time for dinner, so he'd put her plate in the AGA oven to keep it warm and his was long since finished. He drummed his fingers again, then used the same hand to rub the back of his neck.

Finally, _finally_ he heard a Sato mobile slow outside and into view of the kitchen window. Asami waved to him from the driver's seat as Korra got out and started traipsing towards the house. Mako got up, his chair scraping against the floor and tipping slightly. He caught it roughly and hurried to the front door. When he opened it, Korra fell forwards into his arms.

He shifted her weight so he could hold her more comfortably. "God, how hard have they been working you?"

She groaned, trying to prop herself up. "Tired."

"Yeah, I can see that."

She'd been training all week, determined to get back into shape. Mako had told her to take it easy, but she insisted. _I can handle this_ she had said to him, _I can handle myself_.

In any other situation she would've resisted his help, but in her state of complete physical exhaustion, he was able to pick her up, one arm around her shoulders and one with her knees hooked over it. She rested her head on the space where his shoulder became his chest and groaned. Mako could see she was trying to force her eyes open and laughed at just how strong-willed she was.

He carried her upstairs and into the bathroom, sitting her on the edge of the tub when he got there.

"Today was nice," he said as he started pulling her shirt up over her head. "Bolin came for lunch with Opal. I think they're really happy."

"Hmm," she said, staring blankly ahead.

Mako sighed, but continued to make small talk with her as he took off the rest of her clothes as gently as he could. He thought if he tugged too hard she'd topple over.

Once she was undressed he grabbed a towel from the rack and put it around her shoulders. Her hands reached up and pulled it tightly around herself, but her face stayed the same. She really was completely drained.

Mako thought it best not to pry and instead played with the taps in the bath to get the right temperature. He stood in front of Korra and kissed her on the forehead. "I'll be right back," then as he thought of it he added; "Try not to fall backwards. Don't want the avatar drowning."

She breathed out of her mouth as it twitched into what Mako guessed could be classed as a smile. A loopy, exhausted smile.

He kept an ear out for any crashing as he went back down to the kitchen and rummaged around in some cupboards until he found what he wanted. He held the glass jug by the handle and went back upstairs, taking them two at a time.

When he got there again, Korra hadn't moved at all. The tub was nearly full so he tested the temperature and adjusted the taps again. He looked at the products they had on the window sill next to the bath. Everything apart from the soap had been provided by Asami – bubble bath, body wash, some special shampoo for Korra that Mako wasn't so sure about using himself. Bolin and Opal had given them the candles, (Mako quietly thought that Bolin made that call – he was the more romantic one of the two). Looking at the collection of bottles he considered putting in some of the bubble mixture, but decided against it. He remembered Korra saying it wasn't good for actually washing yourself and made her hair greasy.

He turned the taps off and stood to take the towel off Korra's shoulders, bending down to put his arms around her torso and lifting her up. She mumbled something about doing it herself, but her legs were far too tired and Mako had to catch her from falling down. He guided her into the bath, where she sat, slumped, her arms falling into the water between her legs which were bent up so her hands were about in line with her feet. Mako chuckled to himself at how his incredibly hot headed girlfriend could hot head herself into such a state of submission.

He reached over behind her and got hold of the bar of soap, rolling up his sleeves and dipping it in the water. He rubbed it around her back for a while, then lathered his hands and put the bar back. He started rubbing it into her back and she groaned, hanging her head down. After massaging her back for a while, he worked his way down her arms and around the front of her torso. When he got to her breasts he got a little awkward but carried on, lathering them up as well.

He rinsed his hands off in the bath water and started scooping water up her back to wash away the soap suds. Once he'd gotten rid of most of it, he put one arm behind her back and lowered her into the water, washing away the soap on her front and her arms, again taking caution around her breasts, (usually he'd be fine about it, but when she was this out of it he felt a bit weird).

When all the soap was pretty much gone he sat her back up again and got the shampoo, checking it a few times after remembering her complaining that the bottle was similar to that of the conditioner. He leant her back again and used his hand to get the water evenly distributed through her hair, being careful not to get it in her eyes, which were fluttering although closed. He sat her back up again and put the shampoo directly onto her hair. He wasn't sure how much exactly he was supposed to use, but he figured it didn't much matter if he got it all out again.

He knelt up so he could reach her hair better, lathering it up and massaging her head at the same time, knowing she liked that.

He noticed that the shampoo made her hair more mouldable than usual and started playing with it, testing how high he could get her hair without it falling down again. He managed to get it into a perfect mohawk and sat back to admire his work, wishing he had a camera. She sat there, in the bath with a big, fluffy mohawk, her eyelids drooping and her head jerking up every time she caught herself nodding off again. He then gathered it all up into a ponytail right on top of her head and twisted it into a cone.

He shook his head as he smoothed it down again and rubbed it in a little more before getting the jug from where he'd set it down next to the bath. With his right hand he supported her shoulders again and gently lowered her back into the water. He held the jug in his left hand and used it to wash away the suds nearer to her face. She looked up at him, a little more alert at that moment.

She reached a hand out of the water to hold his face. "How did I get so lucky?"

He scoffed. "Shut up, you're over-tired."

Her eyebrows furrowed. "N-no, I'm serious," the water sloshed around her as she struggled to sit up a little. He took hold of her arm to steady her. "After everything we've been through… everything we've put each other through – what I put you through… how am I still so lucky?"

He smiled, feeling his eyes tingling but not letting it go any further than that. "I guess we're both just lucky that way."

She smiled dopily, lying herself back down again. "Yeah, yeah I guess we are."

He washed out the rest of the shampoo and got her to stand up, the water reaching two thirds of the way up her shins. He took out the plug and reached over for the towel, standing and using it to ruffle her hair. She moaned in protest, making a feeble attempt to swat his hands away. He laughed and moved on to her shoulders and arms. He then rubbed down one leg before doing the other. By this time the bath was empty and he wrapped the towel around her, under her arms. He reached into the bath and scooped her up like he did at the front door. By this time the only light in the house was the sun, which was only just in the sky, which was clear enough to still cast shadows on the walls. That same deep, golden orange, now with a slight hint of pink.

When he got her in their bedroom he sat her on the edge of the bed, on her side of the bed. She was really almost gone by this point, with longer periods of time between the jerking of her head as she realised she was asleep. He dried off the drips of water on her shoulders and chest from her hair then wrapped it up like a turban and turned to rummage around in her drawers for a clean pair of pyjamas.

He found her favourites and managed to get her into them despite the fact she was practically wilting. He pulled the covers back on her side and lay her down on the bed, although half the effort was her collapsing sideways. He smiled at her, still trying so hard not to fall asleep. He made his way to his chest of drawers and got changed into a pair of shorts, then got into bed next to her.

He realised she still had the towel on and carefully unwrapped it, trying not to pull her hair in the process. He tossed it on the floor, knowing neither of them cared much. He turned back over and moulded his body to fit behind her perfectly, wrapping an arm around her midsection and kissing the back of her head.

"Mm… thank you," she mumbled sleepily as he nuzzled his head into the crook of her neck.

He smiled into her skin. "Don't mention it."

Korra fell asleep almost instantly, (still trying to resist it, still trying to prove some point that Mako wasn't aware of), but Mako didn't sleep for another couple of hours. He didn't mind it though, it was nice to be with her and to be quiet. He was quite happy lying with her, subconsciously breathing in time with her, watching the shapes of the shadows changing on the wall, the light changing into a pale blue which deepened into darkness which lit up in a pure, milky light as the moon came out from behind a cloud.

After a while he felt his own eyelids drooping and he started slipping into sleep. He found himself jump starting a couple of times after dozing off without realising it, and hoped he didn't disturb Korra. But each time it happened, she just groaned softly and pushed herself closer to him. After a little while longer, Mako fell asleep himself, with that same dopey smile Korra had given him from the bath.


End file.
